Just because you’re not in your own kitchen doesn’t mean that you can’t maintain your awesome Raw lifestyle. Here are some tips and tricks to help. (Depending on whether you’re somewhere for the day or maybe a whole week, pick and choose which tips would work for your situation.)

Check local resources for restaurants where you can order raw food or even just some delicious salads. Plan on visiting these places frequently. Call them ahead of time and tell them your situation and see if some of the restaurants will help you out by preparing special things for you (if they don’t already have things available on their menu). Look for health food stores as well, because they often have raw snacks and/or fresh salad bars. Pick some stuff up when you arrive and take it to where ever you’re staying. And, for heavens sake, don’t be shy about this! Just explain to the company you’re with that this is your lifestyle and you’re doing everything you can to succeed. Ask for their help and watch how eager they become to support it. When I arrive at my travel destination, I tend to make it a point to check these places out FIRST so I know what all of my options are.

If it’s a short trip, then pack a cooler. Load it up with green smoothies, fresh fruit and veggies, a little container of nut butter, raw packaged snacks, protein powder – shaker – water, etc. Heck, even when I go to my mom’s house for the day, I pack a bag or cooler of stuff. She usually has plenty of stuff for me already, but I always want to be prepared.

Pack your favorite things from your kitchen. When I went to NY in the fall we rented an apartment with a kitchen. I sacrificed taking extra pairs of shoes so that I could bring my Blendtec Blenderand Brita water filter. I also packed some other utensils as well as some ingredients such as protein powders, organic nuts and seeds, dates, etc. This way I could make my raw nut milks and protein shakes when I wasn’t at home. It was perfect! There are also great travel blenders available like Tribest.

Call ahead to where you’ll be and see what options are available for kitchen stuff. If it’s a relative’s house, ask about the equipment they have. If it’s a bed and breakfast, perhaps they’ll allow you use of the kitchen. If it’s a hotel, try to score a room with a mini-fridge at least. Consider shipping some of your kitchen equipment ahead of time to arrive when you do.

Once you arrive at your destination, you can stock up on raw goodies from a local health food store (if you didn’t have room in your suitcase for them). Again, things like nuts, seeds, dates, raw snacks, raw granola, as well as fresh ingredients to make your own salads and such. When we were in NY during the summer, we stayed in a hotel with no refrigerator, so I used the ice bucket and the sink to keep things like green juice cold that I bought from Liquiteria. I did this every couple of days. I also bought fruits and foods that could stay fresh on the windowsill like bananas, apples, avocado, oranges, etc. I bought cherries, too, but kept them in sink with ice and ate them within a day.

Have raw food and/or organic produce delivered. This can be a more expensive option, but hey, it’s your health we’re talking about. Treat yourself. You can have raw meals from places such as Pure Market Express, RAWvolution, and Pure Raw Cafe delivered to you (they can be delivered to hotels, too!). And, you can use services such as Boxed Greens or Diamond Organics to deliver fresh organic produce. Check out my blog post showing when Pure Market Express delivered food to me in NY.

Consider relaxing your raw lifestyle a bit while traveling so you don’t stress about it. Try some of the ideas above to ensure that you get some healthy raw food into your diet, and then if you have some cooked vegan food, don’t fret. Taking enzymes to help facilitate digestion can be a good idea.

Grow your own sprouts while you’re traveling. This is fun and such a great way to stay motivated about your Raw lifestyle when you’re not at home. Check out The Sprout People for some ideas.

I was sent a package of food for review by the cool people at Pure Market Express. Have you heard of them? Tried their raw food delivery? Let me say… GOOOOOOOOD STUFF! I’m a fan of their work. Not only do they make good raw vegan food, but their energy is pure love. It comes through in both their food and their email correspondence / customer service. That’s important to me. I’ll be honest, this hasn’t been my experience with all of the raw food delivery companies out there.

Raw food delivery can be so helpful with living the raw food lifestyle. For starters, as a pregnant woman, I sure do appreciate being able to sit back and put my feet up on the couch while I wait for the delivery man. Top that with feeding my body and my growing baby some of the healthiest food in the world. That rocks! I also love that they’re including the nutritional information on the packages of food now. That can be very helpful for people who want to calculate calories, protein, fiber, etc.

Secondly, I’m a fan of raw food delivery during busy times in life… for example the holidays. It’s such a relief that amidst all the food prep for gatherings, attending parties, cleaning, decorating, shopping, and resting from all the activity, it’s a real treat to have a box of organic raw food show up at my door.

Thirdly, raw food delivery is great when traveling.Check out this post (video) I recorded when we traveled to New York and Pure Market Express treated me to a delivery for the first time. (My how my hair has grown since that video in September).

Here are some of the foods they sent to me this second time.

Bacon Jalapeno Poppers

These are really yummy. I had them in the last package and was smiling from ear to ear when they sent them to me again. The combination of spice and creaminess is wonderful. (pictured)

Banana Cream Pie

Pure Market Express knew how much I loved their Banana Cream Pie that they sent me TWO pieces in this delivery. The flavor was the same awesomeness as before, but this time the presentation was different. In NY, the pie arrived in a whole piece. In AZ, the pie arrived kind of all mushed up, like a pudding. It might have been the longer distance it traveled that caused this, but I don’t know. It was still tasty though!

Maple Apple Crepes

Hhmmmm! Excellent. I really enjoyed these and hope to have them again some day. A lovely treat. (pictured)

Baked Mac-n-Cheese

I specifically requested this and was very happy with the result. I wish I had saved some for my husband to try. The one thing I’d change… I’d like a little more sauce with it.

Lasagna

There was some zing to this that affected my mouth a bit (my husband’s mouth, too) that I could do without, but otherwise it was good flavor and a pretty presentation. (pictured)

Donut Holes

These were fun. My favorite part was the somewhat crunchy exterior – reminded me of donut holes.

So, I’m going to back track a bit and write about the awesomeness of our stay in Pensacola, FL. We have family there with a farm (horses, cat, dog, huge pond with fish, etc) so we stayed a few days and just relaxed. It was amazing. The day after we arrived we were blessed with warm sunshine so we went to the beach briefly and stuck our feet in the water. The remaining days were filled with pouring rain, but it was magical as we sat on the big porch in rocking chairs and talking for hours and hours and witnessing nature do its thing.

One late afternoon when it wasn’t raining, but the grass was wet after having just been rained on, we went out and blew bubbles. How fun! And! How meditative! Gently blowing into the wand, watching the beautiful bubbles form and then float softly to the ground, where they stayed for many minutes at a time, was soothing. It’s funny… I was telling my mom about it and she relayed a story to me,“Yes..I use to buy you those cheap bubbles in the bottle… When you were done with the bottle, I filled it with water and kitchen soap. It took you two minutes to tell me, ‘ITS NOT THE SAME!!!'”

There were a few highlights to this leg of our trip (in no particular order). First, being on the farm was nurturing to my soul as I awaited the day for my first pregnancy blood tests. The full moon, the fresh air, and the warm night breezes completely relaxed me. Secondly, the horses. I love horses. I really really love horses. When I’m around them, I’m in the moment… I’m under their spell. I don’t think about the past or the future. I’m just calm, mesmerized by their beauty, and in awe. Being around the horses and feeding them organic apples and carrots was enchantment. The third aspect of the trip that was awesome was spending time with family that we rarely see. This was one of the main reasons for taking the drive down south instead of cutting across the Midwest. We laughed so much and had a blast. Lastly… I found out I was pregnant while in Pensacola. I had the first blood draw on Monday morning and received the awesome news of our success in the afternoon, which most of you know by now from my earlier blog posts. It was wonderful to share that exciting time with our family. So, as you can see, Pensacola has a very special place in my heart.

Regarding our food adventures while there, we had access to a fantastic natural foods market called Ever Man’s. It was filled with all kinds of fresh organic produce.

I bought fresh sprouts, pineapple, apples, kiwi, kale, and spinach to make nourishing green smoothies. Yum! There were also two vegan (mostly organic) restaurants that we tried. End of the Line was quite good. I had a sauerkraut Reuben sandwich that was mega tasty and a bowl of lentil soup that I swear was the best lentil soup I’d ever had.

Friday, we made it to Whole Foods in Jacksonville, FL on our way to Pensacola. Thank heavens! We were all out of fresh organic produce and I was hungry.

I was elated to find that they make fresh organic green juice so I bought a large one that was made of kale, celery and a touch of apple. DELISH!!! Having access to green juice on the road at places like Whole Foods really saves me a lot of effort of trying to lug around my juicer, although I have heard of people traveling with their Breville (this model in particular). I’m tempted to try that next time, perhaps instead of taking my Blendtec. If I could talk my husband into him not taking any underwear, socks, and the extra pair of shoes, then maybe I could bring them both! ;)

I’ve been washing my hands a lot while on the road and using soap in the bathrooms of rest stops, fast food joints, and gas stations. It was making my hands quite dry. So, I was excited to find Dr. Bronner’s Magic All-One Organic lotion. I’m not one to use lotions very much, so I spent about an hour reading all the ingredients of various products in Whole Foods. Dr. Bronner’s was the best, and I’m very happy with it. It makes my hands extra soft.

Here’s a fun little video showing me in Whole Foods (trying to be stealthy and filming without getting caught). Traveling in the Raw is easy.